PRINCETON, N.J. -- Sixty-one percent of Americans say having a baby outside of marriage is morally acceptable, a new high by one percentage point and the third straight year that roughly six in 10 Americans have sanctioned this once frowned-upon behavior...

...Former Vice President Dan Quayle made having a child outside of marriage a political issue in 1992, when he famously criticized the decision of fictional TV news anchor Murphy Brown to have a child...

Growing Social Liberalism a Factor in Greater Acceptance of Out-of-Wedlock Births

Nearly every major demographic or attitudinal subgroup has shown a significant increase since 2004 in their belief that out-of-wedlock births are morally acceptable...

...But there is one subgroup -- Americans who identify their views on social issues as "conservative" -- whose views on out-of-wedlock births have changed little over the past 14 years...